Scene of the Crime
by Lucy Gillam

He couldn't exactly say it was a relief to be back.

It was a relief to put away Bruce Wayne, to let him slink off to wherever humiliated billionaires went to lick their wounds. It was a relief to know that he would soon be back in the mode of doing things to save his city. It was a relief to know he would see Leslie again, be more assured of her safety than a few hurried messages could make him, a relief to see Jim Gordon and know they would reclaim the city. It was a relief to be getting back to the work, however insurmountable it might seem.

It was not a relief to see his city in ruins, or to realize that things had only gotten worse in his absence, or to know that he should have been back here sooner. And that he shouldn't have needed Talia to tell him his duty. He wasn't sure what had delayed him.

The warehouse seemed empty.

"Excuse me, sir?"

Alfred was already shedding the disguise that under normal circumstances would have looked a bit silly but let him blend right into No Man's Land. He felt another momentary twinge at Alfred's presence here, but in truth, he would need the help. He tried not to regret sending Dick Grayson away, but he couldn't have stayed in Gotham while Batman himself was gone. At least he was safe, away from here.

"As you suspected, sir, the police have already expanded their territory to Old Gotham, albeit not without losses."

Batman nodded. He would have expected no less of Jim Gordon.

"There was something else, however," Alfred continued. "Only a rumor, perhaps, but the person who gave me the information seemed quite positive."

"What's that?" Batman asked almost absently, examining the map to pinpoint the best area to begin his work.

"It seems, sir, that you have in fact been back for quite some time."

That got his attention.

"Or, rather," Alfred continued, "someone wearing a bat-symbol has, in fact, been active in Gotham for nearly a month, and has even begun tagging certain areas as under his protection. Here," Alfred pointed to the map in the area of the upper east side.

Batman stared at the map. It was, perhaps, not unexpected. Even before No Man's Land, people had tried to adopt the symbol. Jim's daughter had not tried it again, but there was nothing to say others wouldn't in his absence.

He would need to find whoever it was, and decide what to do from there. Allies could be useful, but the wrong person wearing his symbol could be more dangerous than working alone.

~~~

It was not difficult to find the person wearing the bat-symbol. A night of wandering the upper east side in some old clothes, following sounds of trouble, brought him to a skirmish in an alley between a female figure in a black suit and two men. The woman had a yellow bat-symbol on her chest, and the men had Black Mask's symbol painted on the backs of their jackets.

The men were not faring very well.

Batman stayed across the street in the shadows, just watching for the moment. He was perhaps less surprised than some would be that it was a woman operating under the sign of the Bat. The idea was not without precedent, and he had too much experience to assume a costumed crusader must be male.

Her entire face was covered, as was her hair, but he was fairly certain by her moves that she was not Jim's daughter. By the time she landed the third kick in a place that was usually chosen to create lasting damage, he was sure. Styles could change over the years, as could people, but he could not believe Jim Gordon's daughter would casually break a leg like that.

He did, however, know someone who would, and if his suspicions were correct, there was going to be a conversation. It was possible, just possible, that she could be of use, but they would have to establish certain things.

The woman grabbed the man who was still able to stand by the collar.

"This area is under my protection," she said in voice obviously modulated to be deep and menacing. Not a bad job, either. "Remember that."

She shoved the man away, and he obediently ran, leaving his companion still groaning on the ground, clutching his broken leg.

The woman turned towards the street, and Batman was just about to duck away when a figure landed in front of her. A man this time, dressed in plain, form-fitting black. His back was to Batman, but it didn't matter. He'd know that figure anywhere.

"Took care of the…" Grayson stopped, and walked around the woman to look at the thugs, then turned back.

He was not wearing the symbol.

"Aw, man, we talked about this," he said to her. "It's no good leaving them unable to walk! How are they supposed to leave if they can't walk?"

"They'll manage." Her voice was flat and pitiless.

"It's still not good…" He gestured vaguely in the way Batman had come to recognize. "Not good."

"It sets an example. We have to strike fear in them."

"I thought that's what that was for," Dick responded, pointing at the symbol.

"It has to have force behind it, or it loses its power. You'll do the rest?"

Grayson sighed. "Yeah, yeah."

The woman nodded and threw a jumpline. When she was gone, Grayson took out a spray can and carefully marked the wall of one of the buildings with a bat symbol. When he was done, he went over to where the man was still clutching his leg.

"Um, can I…" He sighed. "Look, I can take you over to 32nd. That's right by your territory, and I'm sure someone will come find you."

"Go fuck yourself," the man ground out.

"Yeah, you know, even I'm not that flexible. And for a guy who can't walk, you're awfully quick to turn down help."

The suggestion was repeated.

Dick sighed again. "Your funeral, man. I just hope not literally." With one last look at the injured man, he walked away.

Batman stepped out onto the street and looked down to see his hands clenched in fists.

He was still here. He had stayed, after Batman had specifically told him to leave. Stayed where he wasn't safe, stayed against direct orders.

He was working with someone else, someone he must know was inappropriate. Someone who was wearing his symbol.

She was wearing the symbol -- and Dick wasn't. He was with her, tagging buildings with a symbol she had stolen, but not wearing it himself.

There would need to be a conversation. Possibly several.

~~~

He cut her jumpline on 45th and Green. She was just far enough above the ground for the fall to make a point, but not far enough for it to really injure her.

She was back on her feet immediately, and he let her see him in the ruins of a third-floor apartment whose walls had crumbled during the quake. She tensed, then nodded.

He waited until she had reached the apartment and nervously brushed the dust from her costume before speaking.

"Huntress."

"I wondered if you were ever going to show up." Her voice was muffled a bit by the mask, but it was her real voice, not the one she'd used on the thug yesterday.

"You're wearing something that doesn't belong to you," he said flatly.

"I didn't think you'd like it." Her voice was equally flat, and for reasons he didn't want to explore, that only made him angrier.

"I don't."

"You didn't expect me to do nothing, did you? Or did you expect me to run away, just like--" She stopped as he took a step forward. "This is my city, too. And you were gone." She laughed bitterly. "Do you think I like wearing your symbol? After the way you treated me? But you left, and as much as I hate it, I could do more in this than as the Huntress. No one remembers the Huntress. You made sure of that."

For a moment, he was almost tempted to nod. It was a remarkable sublimation of ego, to take on his symbol. It showed dedication to the cause above self. And if her methods were a little intense, he could temper that. She could still be valuable, and along with Dick…

He felt his hands clench again.

"It stops now. If you want to protect your neighborhood as Huntress, do it." That much he could concede. It would be one less place for him to worry about, and it would keep her occupied. "I'll be watching, but I won't stop you. But you won't wear that. I see you in it again, it ends."

She was silent for a long moment.

"I don't know why I ever thought… Fine," she spat, and turned to leave.

"Huntress!" he called after her.

"What?"

"Another thing. Stay away from the boy."

She tilted her head in obvious puzzlement. "The… You don't mean Dick, do you?"

"Yes. Stay away from him."

"Are you… Are you kidding me? We've been working together for nearly two months, and you want me to… Have you asked him about that?"

"I'll deal with it. Just stay away." He ignored the voice (as always, sounding remarkably like Alfred) that told him Dick would be angry with him for this. He didn't need an influence like hers on top of all the other questionable influences in Dick's life.

She laughed again, still bitterly. "Fine. I won't go to him. But if you think you can stop him from coming to me if he wants to, you don't know him very well at all." She threw another jumpline, and swung away from the apartment.

Batman forced himself to relax his hands. That was one conversation handled.

One more to go.

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